Sheffield based Transaction Network Services (TNS) transports more than
eight billion transactions annually from point-of-sale terminals, ATMs
and vending machines, as well as financial information exchange messages
for the securities industry, and SS7 and C7 signalling messages for the
telecommunications sector. It has developed special hardware for this
critical data processing activity, and when it came to choosing the
enclosures for its UK nodal sites, fast and simple installation coupled
with easy access and mounting flexibility came high on the list of
priorities.
TNS was attracted to the practical design and construction of Rittal's
flexRack and RiPatch products, which were subsequently chosen to marshal
the cabling and house equipment such as transaction network access
controllers, interface processors and intelligent terminal adaptors.
RiPatch (illustrated) is an open patching frame that allows plug-and-play
installation and fast patching of data cables. Importantly, it also
allows the equipment to be rapidly re-located with the minimum of effort
and disruption - a key requirement of TNS. Features include a high cable
packing density, separate routing for copper and fibre cables and a
system that ensures the minimum bending radii of these cables are not
exceeded.
The electronic systems are housed in Rittal flexRack enclosures, which
offer 16 attachment levels, either built-in as part of the design or
provided in the form of detachable mounting angles that can be moved
throughout the depth of the enclosure. This ensures that equipment is
mounted exactly where it is needed and cable trays installed directly to
the frame members, independent of the mounting angles.
All enclosures are fitted with an easily accessible, roof-mounted fan
tray, which provides the necessary cooling without taking up internal
space or hindering access for installation and maintenance.